New Book of Traditional Prayers to St. Thomas Aquinas

For those of you who, like myself, have a devotion to the Angelic Doctor, I heartily recommend this little gem that was sent to me by its author.  The purpose of this small tome is simple…to introduce readers to the beautiful patrimony of prayers (both liturgical and devotional), which the Church has given us, in order to increase devotion to St. Thomas Aquinas.

Included within its pages, you will find:

1. The Little Office of St. Thomas Aquinas
2. Antiphons and Responsories from the Office of St. Thomas Aquinas
3. Prayer of the Angelic Warfare Confraternity
4. Prayers to St. Thomas, Patron of Catholic Schools
5. Prayer Before Studying St. Thomas
6. Litany in Honor of St. Thomas Aquinas, Doctor of the Church and Patron of Chastity
7. The Six Sundays in Honor of St. Thomas Aquinas

Much of the traditional Dominican office of St. Thomas, much of which has been lost with the shift to the Liturgy of the Hours, is presented here in both Latin and English.

I quite heartily recommend this volume for anyone who has a devotion to St. Thomas…or who wishes to begin one.

You can purchase it at Os Justi Press here. Or, you can purchase it from Amazon here.

Conference on Medieval Dominican Liturgy, March 6-7, 2023, Toronto

For those of you who may not be aware, Fr. Augustine Thompson, OP, is now the President of The Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies at the University of Toronto (founded by Etienne Gilson). The Institute is holding an International Conference on Medieval Dominican Liturgy, scheduled to coincide with the traditional feast of St. Thomas Aquinas, March 5 to 7, 2023. This conference will include papers by scholars from all around the world who have made major contributions to the study of medieval Dominican liturgy. That program may also be downloaded here.

This conference is open to the general public, and there is no registration fee, although those who wish to attend the sessions must register by sending an email to the PIMS Executive Assistant, Ms. Cynthia Watson. Reduced-rate rooms (limited number) are still available at the conference hotel. Should you want one, please mention this in your registration-request email. Note also that the two public liturgies in the Dominican Rite, the First Vespers and the Solemn Mass of Thomas Aquinas, are both open to the general public without need for registration. They will be held at St. Basil’s Collegiate Church, St. Michael’s College, Toronto ON---for more information, see the program:

Finding Old Editions of the Dominican Breviary

In response to all the questions that I get regarding advice on how to obtain an old edition of the Breviarium SOP, I have created a link on my blog which provides the simple instructions that I usually give to people when they contact me via email.  The link is on the upper right hand side of the blog page.

Not that I don't enjoy hearing from people interested in the venerable Office of the Dominican Order, but I think this link may be more useful that simple emails.

As always, feel free to reach out to me via email if you have any questions.  Veritas!

COMPLETE: The 1967 Dominican Breviary in English Online

I am pleased to announce that the complete 1967 Dominican Breviary, in English, is now available on this blog site.

If you click on the link above, entitled "1967 Dominican Breviary in English" you will be taken to a table of contents page.  Each entry in the table is a hyperlink to pdf texts of the breviary.  The table of contents is arranged in the order that the actual breviary is arranged.

In the 1967 English edition, all of the preliminary texts, Ordinary, Psalter, Commons, Appendices, etc., are the same in both editions.  The only thing that changes between the two volumes is the Proper of the Seasons, and the Proper of the Saints.  In addition, at the end of the Proper of the Saints in Volume II, there are two sections with additional office texts.

The first is called "Office of the Saints O.P." whose feasts are in some places celebrated with I or II Class rank, For the Second Order.  So this section contains texts for additional lessons for Matins, or 1st Vespers, etc., so that the office of the saints can be celebrated as I or II Class.

The second is called "On The Missions", and contains additional office texts for the saints associated with the Missions, so that they can be celebrated in certain places as I or II Class.  These saints are St. Teresa of the Child Jesus, and St. Martin de Porres, O.P., and Bl. John of Vercelli, O.P..

WARNING:  Some of the files are rather large (in excess of 100 MB) and the pdf viewer on your browser may not support a file that large for preview.  If that happens, you can simply download the file.  Please let me know if you find any missing pages, or double pages.  I will fix them as soon as I can.

Perhaps, some day, I can do the same thing for the 1962 Breviarium SOP, so that both editions will be online for anyone who wishes to do research or possibly even use them to pray.

Veritas!

UPDATE: The 1967 Dominican Breviary in English Online

After a long hiatus, I have restarted the project of putting the entire 1967 English translation of the Dominican Breviary online, here on this blog site.  Thanks to the help of a generous follower of this blog, Volume I was completed a few years ago.

I am now in the process of completing the project, by scanning and packaging the temporale and sanctorale from Volume II.  Once this is done and uploaded, the entire 2-volume breviary will be complete and available for anyone who wishes to view it.

As of today, the Prayers & Homilies for Sundays after Pentecost is complete and uploaded.  It can be viewed by clicking on the link above.  The temporale from Volume II has been scanned.  I am hoping to have the sanctorale scanned by tomorrow.

Hopefully, the entire project will be complete by New Years Day.

UPDATE:  The Proper of the Seasons from Volume II is now uploaded too.

Antiphonarium S.O.P. - 1933

Yesterday, I received the latest, and probably last, addition to my collection of Dominican Rite liturgical books.  The elusive "Antiphonarium Sacri Ordinis Praedicatorum - Pro Diurnis Horis".  This is the volume that contains the chant for the day hours of the Dominican office.  It was published in 1933, under the authority of Master General Stanislaus Gillet, O.P..

I'd like to give a big shout out to Tom Kiser of Vivarium Books for keeping his eyes out for this one, which I have been trying to find for years.  He is a great proprietor and a true bibliophile, from whom I have obtained a number of the books in my collection.

It's a great volume, chock full of the wonderful chant that the Order used to use to sing the office.  The binding is tight and the leather cover is in good condition.  Looking forward to using it!

2019 Calendar Errata

If you have not already noticed it, there are some major errors in the 2019 Breviarium calendar.  My deepest apologies.  In 5 years of producing these calendars, I have never caused such pronounced blunders.  Mea culpa!

You can download replacement pages for the April and June 2019 here.

The errors involve the feast of the Annunciation (which is shown on April 29), displacing the feast of St. Peter Martyr, OP, and the feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.

1967 English Translation of Breviarium S.O.P. - ONLINE

Thanks to the generous help of a reader of this blog, Mr. Joseph P. Bradley, MD, OP, I have been able to make substantial headway with my long-desired project to put the entire 1967 English translation of the 1962 Breviarium SOP online, in a convenient and usable format.

My goal was to have a page on this blog, that is essentially a Table of Contents of the entire breviary, with hyperlinks to the various sections.  Toward that end, Mr. Bradley was kind enough to devote the time to scanning Volume as a pdf document last Fall, and the page is now set up and available for public use.  All that is missing are the Propers of the Season and Saints from Volume II, which we hope to have available by late Spring/early Summer 2019.

To access the online version of the Breviary, simply click on the banner link above, which says "1967 Dominican Breviary in English".

It will take you to the Table of Contents page.  Simply click on the hyperlink and the pdf document for that section should appear.

Once the two Propers from Volume II are uploaded there will be a complete copy of the 1967 English translation online for the first time, that I am aware of.  I hope everyone who enjoys this blog, or who has some devotion to the traditional Office of the Order of Preachers, will use and enjoy this page.

BREVIARIUM S.O.P. 2019 DOMINICAN RITE CALENDAR

Just in time for Christmas!  Once again, I barely made it this year!  Nevertheless, I am pleased to announce the completion of the 2019 Dominican Rite Calendar, for praying the 1962 Dominican Breviary.  The Calendar is now available from Fr. Augustine Thompson's "Dominican Liturgy Publications" at Lulu.

As usual, the calendar also includes notations for the 15 Tuesdays devotion to Our Holy Father St. Dominic and other items of interest for members of the Order of Preachers.

The calendar is based on the Dominican Rite Liturgical Calendar that Fr. Augustine Thompson, O.P. prepares every year.  The format is similar to that of the Ordo published by the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter for the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.  The calendar contains the entire liturgical year, according to the 1962 Breviarii Iuxta Ritum Ordinis Preædicatorum, updated with the most recent canonizations of Dominican saints.

BREVIARIUM S.O.P. 2018 DOMINICAN RITE CALENDAR

Just in time for Christmas!  I barely made it this year, but once again I am pleased to announce the completion of my 2018 Dominican Rite Calendar, for praying the 1962 Dominican Breviary.  The Calendar is now available from Fr. Augustine Thompson's "Dominican Liturgy Publications" at Lulu.

Once again, the calendar includes notations for the 15 Tuesdays devotion to Our Holy Father St. Dominic.

The calendar is based on the Dominican Rite Liturgical Calendar that Fr. Augustine Thompson, O.P. prepares every year.  The format is similar to that of the Ordo published by the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter for the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.  The calendar contains the entire liturgical year, according to the 1962 Breviarii Iuxta Ritum Ordinis Preædicatorum, updated with the most recent canonizations of Dominican saints.

BREVIARIUM S.O.P. 2017 DOMINICAN RITE CALENDAR

Just in time for Christmas!  I barely made it this year, but once again I am pleased to announce the completion of my 2017 Dominican Rite Calendar, for praying the 1962 Dominican Breviary.  The Calendar is now available from Fr. Augustine Thompson's "Dominican Liturgy Publications" at Lulu.

Once again, the calendar includes notations for the 15 Tuesdays devotion to Our Holy Father St. Dominic.

The calendar is based on the Dominican Rite Liturgical Calendar that Fr. Augustine Thompson, O.P. prepares every year.  The format is similar to that of the Ordo published by the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter for the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.  The calendar contains the entire liturgical year, according to the 1962 Breviarii Iuxta Ritum Ordinis Preædicatorum, updated with the most recent canonizations of Dominican saints.

The 1909 Breviarium Juxta Ritum Sacri Ordinis Praedicatorum

Thanks to the gracious generosity of Jose Dominguez, a tertiary from Chicago and a long-time reader of this blog and a lover of the Dominican Rite breviary, I am please to offer a page dedicated to the 1909 Breviarium Juxta Ritum Sacri Ordinis Praedicatorum.  On this page, you will find four (4) downloadable files that contain the entire text of both volumes of this magnificent edition of the breviary of the Order.

This edition was the fruit of the labors of one of the finest liturgists in the history of the Order.  Fr. Vincent Laporte, O.P. was a member of the Province of Toulouse and a renowned musician.  In his book "The History of the Dominican Liturgy", Fr. William Bonniwell, O.P. said this of the 1909 Breviarium S.O.P. "For accuracy of text, clarity of rubrics, and convenience of arrangement, it was the finest edition of the Dominican breviary ever published.  The Order was indeed fortunate to receive from this painstaking scholar the fruits of nearly forty years of research."

A link to the page containing the links is now under the blog banner above.  Thank you Jose!

Novena To Our Holy Father St. Dominic: July 26 - August 3

This Tuesday, July 26, is the last Tuesday of our 15 Tuesdays' devotion in honor of Our Holy Father St. Dominic that we began way back in April.  It also happens to be the first day of the traditional Novena to St. Dominic, if you follow the liturgical calendar of the Order from the 1962 Breviarium juxta ritum sacri ordinis praedicatorum as we do here.   We will say this prayer every day from July 26 through August 3...the Vigil of our Holy Father's feast.  On August 3, we will anounce his feast at Pretiosa (after Lauds or Prime) and then at 1st Vespers, the liturgical office of his feast begins.  (If you follow the new liturgical calendar, the novena begins on July 30, to coincide with the new date for St. Dominic's feast on August 8).

Though this novena prayer does not appear in the Breviarium S.O.P. it is, nevertheless, a wonderful exercise of piety to our Holy Father St. Dominic, who we know advocates for all of us in heaven before the throne of our Lord Jesus Christ.

O renowned champion of the faith of Christ, most holy Saint Dominic, who didst renounce the honour and dignity of an earthly principality to embrace the poor, laborious, and mortified life which should distinguish a disciple of Him Who has said: "If any man will come after Me, let him take up his cross and follow Me."

O burning torch, who being thyself consumed with the fire of divine love, didst incessantly labor to enkindle that sacred flame in the hearts of others, look down upon me from that throne of glory where thou enjoyest the reward of all thy labors, and obtain that some sparks of that blessed fire may be lighted in my soul, to animate and encourage me under any crosses or trials with which it shall please the divine goodness to visit me.

Thou, O great Saint, regardest as nothing all the afflictions thou didst endure, and all the toils thou didst undergo for the promotion of God's holy cause; obtain, I beseech Thee, that the same ardent love which strengthened thee, may make sweet to me labors, humiliations, disgraces, or whatever other mortifications I may have to suffer for the Name of Jesus. May I ever bear in mind that nothing can happen to me but by the particular dispensation of a God Who is infinitely wise, and therefore knows what is best for my welfare; infinitely powerful, and consequently able to effect it; and above all, infinitely merciful and loving, Who has laid down His life for my redemption, and continues daily to give new proofs of His love and bounty.

O tender Father of the poor who, when all other resources were exhausted, didst offer thyself for their relief, obtain for me that true spirit of compassion for the suffering members of Jesus Christ, which shone forth so conspicuously in thy holy life. May I, by charity to those whom Jesus so dearly loves, lay up for myself treasures in heaven, where thou now enjoyest that which the eye hath not seen, nor the ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, but which God has prepared for those who love Him, and who prove themselves His Disciples by the observance of His Divine precept "love one another."

I praise and thank God for the high degree of sanctity to which He had raised thee, and the special privileges by which He has distinguished thee. I conjure thee, by that gratitude with which thou shalt for all eternity be penetrated for thy Divine Benefactor, implore for me the grace to root out of my heart whatever is not agreeable in His sight, especially that evil habit by which I most frequently offend Him. Obtain likewise the favors I request in this Novena, through thy powerful intercession.

(Mention your intentions here)

O glorious Mother of God, Queen of the most sacred Rosary, thou who didst love Dominic with the affection of a mother, and were most tenderly loved and honored by him, look upon me, for his sake, with an eye of pity, deign to join with him in presenting these petitions to thy most Blessed Jesus. I sincerely desire from this moment to love Him with all my heart, and serve Him with all my strength, and now place myself under thy powerful protection, as a sure means of obtaining all the graces necessary to serve Him faithfully here, that I may eternally rejoice with Him hereafter. Amen.

Codex of Humbert de Romans Online!

I you haven't already seen this at New Liturgical Movement or on Dominican Liturgy Blogspot, Fr. Augustine Thompson, O.P. has posted a link to a full color, downloadable copy of the prototype Dominican liturgical books that were produced under the direction of Master General Humbert de Romans.  As Fr. Thompson explains it:

"This manuscript was compiled by the Master of the Order Humbert of Romans in accord with the commission of the Dominican General Chapter of  Buda in 1254 and approved by the General Chapter of Paris in 1256.  Except for additional feasts and the Psalter Reform of St. Pius X, the texts of this document were authoritative as the prototype for our liturgical books.  This copy was carried by masters of the Order during visitations to correct the books of our houses.

Those who would like copies of the images for each of the parts may download them as zip files on the left sidebar under the heading "Dominican Chant Books--Downloadable."  I have divided the files so that they are not excessively large (they total 2.8 gigabytes).   Even, so some of these files, especially those with lots of music, like the Graduale and the Antiphonarium are very large.  So do be patient as they download.

Before the listing of the files, there is also a link to download the typescript index prepared by Fr. William Bonniwell in the 1950s.  It will make it much easier to find particular texts or music."

Thank you Fr. Thompson!

1959 St. Dominic Hand Missal Online!

 Fr. Augustine Thompson posted about this on his Dominican Liturgy blog and New Liturgical Movement as well.

Thanks for the generous effort of Fr Sebastian White, O.P, a pdf of the 1959 St. Dominic Hand Missal is now available on line.  This is the Missal that I have, and it is a treasure trove of liturgical Dominicana!  What is really cool about this edition is that its calendar, and hence the sanctorale and temporale, include all of the Dominican saints and blesseds, as they were celebrated on the eve of the calendar update in 1960 which saw so many of their feasts removed.

It also contains the proper Mass prefaces for the feasts of St. Dominic, St. Thomas Aquinas, and St. Francis of Assisi.  There are also votive Masses, including a privileged one for Our Lady of the Rosary.

Unlike your typical Roman Missal, this one has the English on top of the page and the Latin on the bottom.  I use mine whenever I attend a Dominican Rite Mass.

I am going to add it to the "Dominican Downloads" tab of my blog.  You can download it here.

Cambridge Library Online Exhibit - Dominican Books

The Library at the University of Cambridge has an online exhibit of Dominican books from their collection, entitled "A Pipeline From Heaven - 800 Years Of Dominican Books".  As the introduction page explains, the term "pipeline from heaven" is a quote from Humbert de Romans Commentary on the Rule of St. Augustine, wherein he is describing the attitude of the friars toward their books.

There are numerous pictures of some old Dominican breviaries and missals, which may interest readers of this blog.  Of particular note is the beautiful illustrations and illuminations that graced the pages of these magnificent volumes.

The exhibit is available here.

BREVIARIUM S.O.P. 2016 DOMINICAN RITE CALENDAR

Just in time for Christmas!  I am pleased to announce the completion of my 2016 Dominican Rite Calendar, for praying the 1962 Dominican Breviary.  The Calendar is now available from Fr. Augustine Thompson's "Dominican Liturgy Publications" at Lulu.

New additions this year are the traditional prayers for a General Chapter, since the Order will be conducting a Chapter in Bologna in 2016.  The calendar includes the dates that the prayers are to be said, as well as notations that indicate the 15 Tuesdays devotion to Our Holy Father St. Dominic.

The calendar is based on the Dominican Rite Liturgical Calendar that Fr. Augustine Thompson, O.P. prepares every year.  The format is similar to that of the Ordo published by the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter for the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.  The calendar contains the entire liturgical year, according to the 1962 Breviarii Iuxta Ritum Ordinis Preædicatorum, updated with the most recent canonizations of Dominican saints.

Dominican Gear

I have been meaning to do a post on this for over a year now.  Sorry for the delay.  A friend of mine sent me a link to this site some time ago.  A young Catholic woman in Ann Arbor, Michigan makes fine leather products, including breviary and missal covers, and rosary pouches.  She sells them via her online store on Etsy.

Opening of the 800th Jubilee Year - UPDATE

The website of the Order has now been updated to include an English translation of the letter from the Apostolic Peniteniary, granting the plenary indulgence for the Jubilee celebration of the 8th Centenary of the founding of the Order of Preachers.

You can find the link here.

It appears as though the indulgence can be gained for the poor souls in Purgatory in two (2) ways.  By uniting themselves in their hearts with the spiritual purpose of the Holy Year of Mercy:

• While devoutly participating in the Jubilee Year celebrations.
• In the churches and places of worship of the Dominican family which they will visit on pilgrimage, and where they meditate before the Blessed Sacrament for a period of time, concluding with the Lord's Prayer, he Creed, the Jubilee prayer, and the invocation of the Blessed Virgin Mary of he Most Holy Rosary.

The usual conditions apply (sacramental Confession, Communion, and prayer for the intentions of the Pope).  Also, as noted in the letter, the indulgence can be gained every day!  This translation seems a bit rushed, and some further clarification is in order in my opinion.  More to come as it is made available.

Opening of the 800th Jubilee Year

As many of you know, 2016 will mark the 800th Anniversary of the establishment of the Order of Preachers.  The jubilee celebration officially kicks off on Saturday, November 7.  Our Holy Father, Pope Francis, has approved a plenary indulgence for those who participate in the jubilee.  A copy of the approval, from the Apostolic Penitentiary is included in this post.  As soon as a translation of the letter is available, I will publish a link to it.  Hopefully, it will be translated into multiple languages.

The Order's website has a whole page dedicated to the jubilee, which will take place over the next year or more.  You can find it here.

The 2016 Breviarium S.O.P. calendar, which I will be publishing shortly through Fr. Augustine Thompson's "Dominican Publications" again this year, will contain the traditional prayers for a General Chapter, which will take place in 2016 in Bologna.

May all of the readers of this blog partake of the wonderful benefits of being members of the timeless Order that Our Holy Father St. Dominic founded, 800 years ago.  And may we all participate, as best we can, in the jubilee celebration of its founding, and our Blessed Mother's patronage over these past 800 years.